There seems to be a conflict between the power asserted by people onto other people's lives and the force of autonomy that, Corinne, in particular displays. People are always forcing their wills on others. Corinne is subjected to the power of Lady Edgermond, both as a child, and as an adult in Lady Edgermond's refusal to acknowledge Corinne's existence, family connections or her reputation. Madame d'Arbigny attempts to force her will on Lord Nelvil which works temporarily, but who is still more under the control of his father's influence than anyone else's (and as we see, the persists throughout the story). At points this power works. Each character bends, at some level, to the power of another. What I find intriguing is the sources of these wills of power.
For Lady Edgermond and Oswald, the power is exerted from a source of social custom and propriety. Both are alike in the presumption that England does it best. And while Lady Edgermond's perspective is unmoving, Oswald's is not...to a point. In this way, this bendability comes from his love of Corinne and his wish to love her openly, without constraint. Corinne's power comes from a place, not of social customs enforced, but of social customs embraced, revered and natural. For her, Italy allows her to be her natural, true self. It seems that Corinne, both sees Italy as her "native" land and her "natural" habitat where she can express and be her true self. In this way, each country becomes a "stage" for the power of the natives of each nation. Because of this, we come to understand that the notion of country is both the source of the characters' power and the place where they can be who they are. We soon learn that the love story between Corinne and Oswald can only occur in Italy, but it cannot sustain itself because Oswald does not have the power or desire to uproot himself. He cannot fully exist outside the margins of English society, the impositions of family honor, or the love of his own land. For Corinne, it is not so much the margins that Italian society imposes, but the fact that it does not impose ones that restrict her. There is a fluidity, a flexibility, a warmth, that allows Corinne to express her autonomy, her creative power, her intellect and her emotions. Both Oswald and Corinne would have to return to a place of powerlessness in order to make the other happy.
I am not so sure that this is a cautionary tale about power, as it is a revelation about autonomy. Corinne sacrifices her own physical life to maintain the integrity of her intellectual and spiritual one. She does not want to marry. She does not want to give up her independence. And love is powerless in the face of her independence which is, for her, an absolute necessity for her to live the life she is spiritually compelled to live.
For Lady Edgermond and Oswald, the power is exerted from a source of social custom and propriety. Both are alike in the presumption that England does it best. And while Lady Edgermond's perspective is unmoving, Oswald's is not...to a point. In this way, this bendability comes from his love of Corinne and his wish to love her openly, without constraint. Corinne's power comes from a place, not of social customs enforced, but of social customs embraced, revered and natural. For her, Italy allows her to be her natural, true self. It seems that Corinne, both sees Italy as her "native" land and her "natural" habitat where she can express and be her true self. In this way, each country becomes a "stage" for the power of the natives of each nation. Because of this, we come to understand that the notion of country is both the source of the characters' power and the place where they can be who they are. We soon learn that the love story between Corinne and Oswald can only occur in Italy, but it cannot sustain itself because Oswald does not have the power or desire to uproot himself. He cannot fully exist outside the margins of English society, the impositions of family honor, or the love of his own land. For Corinne, it is not so much the margins that Italian society imposes, but the fact that it does not impose ones that restrict her. There is a fluidity, a flexibility, a warmth, that allows Corinne to express her autonomy, her creative power, her intellect and her emotions. Both Oswald and Corinne would have to return to a place of powerlessness in order to make the other happy.
I am not so sure that this is a cautionary tale about power, as it is a revelation about autonomy. Corinne sacrifices her own physical life to maintain the integrity of her intellectual and spiritual one. She does not want to marry. She does not want to give up her independence. And love is powerless in the face of her independence which is, for her, an absolute necessity for her to live the life she is spiritually compelled to live.